Book Launch – “Tainted Dreams” by Christi Corbett

Good morning!  please welcome indie author Christi Corbett to the blog today!

Christi Corbett, winner of the 2013 RONE Award for Best American Historical novel, lives in a small town in Oregon with her husband and their twin children. The home’s location holds a special place in her writing life; it stands just six hundred feet from the original Applegate Trail and the view from her back door is a hill travelers looked upon years ago as they explored the Oregon Territory and beyond.

You can follow Christi all over the Interwebs:

Blog: https://christicorbett.wordpress.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Christi-Corbett-Author/430817400345104

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChristiCorbett

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/christicorbett/

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Christi-Corbett/e/B00DC8H5CI/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7132469.Christi_Corbett?from_search=true

Email: christicorbett@gmail.com

 

You can also listen to a radio interview with her, right here.

 

And here’s her new book…

 

 

They survived the Oregon Trail, but claiming a legacy would be their biggest challenge yet…

 

Sometimes, the end justifies the means…

Kate Davis arrived into Oregon City transformed from a pampered daughter of fortune into a determined woman with a plan–fulfill her father’s dream of starting a horse ranch in Oregon Territory.

She quickly discovers a harsh truth–even thousands of miles from home, on an unsettled land America doesn’t yet own or govern, gender still takes precedence over ability. Refusing to be ruled once again by the stifling laws and societal norms she’d escaped by leaving Virginia, Kate begins creatively claiming what is rightfully hers.

Until a visit to the land office changes everything.

Jake Fitzpatrick guided Kate across the Oregon Trail, and fell in love with her along the way. Now he wants to marry her and build a life together, but a ruthless man from Jake’s past threatens to reveal a dark secret, and destroy everything he’s worked so hard to achieve.

You can buy it at Amazon, and elsewhere:

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tainted-dreams-christi-corbet/1121906167?ean=2940151530439

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/tainted-dreams

ibookstore: http://ibookstore.com/products.php?i=B00W0R2FAY

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/542314

This is the sequel to her previous novel, Along the Way Home, which won an award as the Best American Historical Novel of 2013 from Ind’Tale Magazine!

Christi has an excerpt for us:

(Jake, Kate, and two people they rescued on the Oregon Trail, William and Margaret, have entered Oregon City. They are looking for the hotel.)

At the end of the block a man burst from the saloon and stumbled into the street, stopping mere inches from Jake’s horse, Plug. Instead of backing away, the man lurched forward and reached for Jake’s saddle horn.

“Hey there!” Jake said. Raising his left leg, he ignored the resulting twinge of pain and shoved the stranger aside with his boot heel. “Watch it!”

The man drew back and stared at him, his eyes bloodshot and unfocused. He raised an unsteady finger, slurred an unintelligible response, and then fell face-­first into a patch of mud.

“Drunken fool,” Jake muttered, then faced the others. “Let’s keep moving.”

High-­pitched squealing foiled his plan.

On the upper deck of the saloon a horde of harlots stood clustered together, giggling and shrieking as they pointed toward him. Clenching his jaw, he focused on the street ahead, all the while hoping Kate didn’t notice one woman in particular who’d separated herself from the others and was now hanging over the railing, calling him by name.

Jake pressed his boot heels into Plug’s side, urging him to a steady trot. Thankfully the others followed and they quickly left the saloon behind.

Minutes later, Kate motioned to the end of the street. “William, we’re running out of road and I still don’t see a hotel.”

William pulled a rumpled paper from his pocket. He studied it briefly and then eyed the surrounding buildings. “My uncle sent me a rough sketch of where it’s located, but there are so many new buildings, it’s useless. Jake, do you know where it’s at?”

Jake shook his head. “There wasn’t a hotel the last time I was here.”

“Perhaps one of those men sitting in front of the apothecary would know?” Margaret suggested.

“We’ll find it ourselves,” Jake replied. He led the group around the corner and onto the next street.

Buildings, so new their fresh pine scent still hung in the air, lined one side of the street while the other side held only two—an enormous livery and a two-­story building with the word Hotel prominently displayed on a white sign with black lettering. A matching sign beside a light-­rimmed window read Rooms Available by the Day or Week.

They dismounted, secured their horses to the empty hitching posts in front of the hotel, and headed for the door. William reached for the glass knob, then turned to the others with a worried frown.

“I haven’t seen my uncle in over seven years, so I don’t know what to expect. Though from what I’ve observed so far, living out west doesn’t seem to improve manners.” He stepped inside and ushered Margaret and Kate through the doorway. Jake followed them, then stopped cold.

Behind the hotel’s front desk sat Theodore Martin—the one man Jake never wanted to see again as long as he lived.

 

 

 

 

And I’ve also got a great interview with Christi:

Who is your favorite author?

I would say Laura Ingalls Wilder, the author of my favorite book series of my youth, the Little House books.

I got my first book of hers at a yard sale at age seven, and read it so much the covers crumbled from wear and eventually fell off the book. And I had my first moment of absolute book joy when I learned that there were many more of her books available (which was my first brush with the concept of a series).

How do you describe your writing style?

My descriptions are simple and to the point. I’ve never been a fan of long, wordy passages, so if my character needs to go from one end of the room to the other, they just do.

Use no more than two sentences. Why should we read your book?

I believe keeping a promise is important, so the theme for both books is the importance of being a man, or woman, of your word. In other words, if you make a promise you should be prepared to keep it, no matter the cost.

Have any of your characters been modeled after yourself?

I gave Kate, my female lead character, my hairstyle from high school (auburn, waist-length, thick and wavy curls) because it was really hard to take care of and keep tangle free, so I figured it would be really hard to do the same on the trail where access to water deep enough to bathe in was rare. There is a part of the book where Kate is cutting snarls from her hair that really resonated with me, since I’d done the same.

If you could exchange lives with any of your characters for a day which character would you choose and why?

I think it would be fun to be Jake, my male lead character. He’s a rugged, yet honorable, man who genuinely cares how the other members of his wagon train are doing, and does everything within his power to keep his promises. Plus, he rides a horse all day!

If you could select one book that you could rewrite and add your own unique twist on, which book would that be and why?

Gone with the Wind. I finally read it when I was twenty-five years old, after years of listening to other readers rave about how good it was, and how much I was missing out on. Also, I wanted to see the movie and I’m a firm believer in reading the book first. I read it in one sitting; I started after dinner, read through the entire night, and finished as the sunrise peeked through the living room curtains. The book irritated me for the first 100 pages because I couldn’t understand why anyone would care so much about such a vapid and selfish character like Scarlett, but thankfully I kept reading and by the end I was fascinated in the character growth Scarlett went through throughout the book.

I would love to see an epilogue where Rhett sees Scarlett’s growth as a person, and gives her another try. (I’ve read the sequel, and heartily enjoyed that this did actually happen)

Beatles or Monkees? Why?

Monkees. I’m a huge fan of Neil Diamond, and they played four songs he wrote: I’m a Believer, A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You, Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow), and Love to Love.

Who should play you in a film of your life?

There are far more interesting and worthy people out there to make a movie about, Harriet Beecher Stowe is one example. She was an amazing author, who changed the world with her book.

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